AFTER LUCIA

DIRECTOR: Michel Franco - MEXICO

Following a car accident, Roberto is left grieving the death of his wife and raising his emotionally distant yet self-sacrificing daughter Alejandra alone. The broken family uproots their lives in Puerto Vallarta and moves to Mexico City in hopes of starting anew. After Lucia focuses on Alejandra as she simultaneously attempts to deal with both her mother’s death and a drunken, teenage mistake that makes her the target of cruel harassment and abuse from her classmates. Ashamed and unable to tell her distressed father or anyone else about the escalating bullying at school, Alejandra’s silence ultimately takes a dreadful toll....

Following a car accident, Roberto is left grieving the death of his wife and raising his emotionally distant yet self-sacrificing daughter Alejandra alone. The broken family uproots their lives in Puerto Vallarta and moves to Mexico City in hopes of starting anew. After Lucia focuses on Alejandra as she simultaneously attempts to deal with both her mother’s death and a drunken, teenage mistake that makes her the target of cruel harassment and abuse from her classmates. Ashamed and unable to tell her distressed father or anyone else about the escalating bullying at school, Alejandra’s silence ultimately takes a dreadful toll. This exquisitely told tale of the heartbreaking pain of insensitive bullying won the main prize in the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival and is this year’s Mexican submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. (93 mins.)

ALIEN BOY: THE DEATH AND LIFE OF JAMES CHASSE

DIRECTOR: Brian Lindstrom - UNITED STATES

On September 17, 2006, James Chasse, a shy and gentle man with schizophrenia, was tackled by three police officers in front of dozens of eyewitnesses on a downtown street corner in Northwest Portland. He was not suspected of a crime, nor had he committed one, but nonetheless he suffered 17 broken ribs, a separated shoulder, a punctured lung, and numerous bruises and contusions—before dying. Chasse’s death and treatment shocked the city, asking profound questions about how we treat those with mental illness and what kind of a police force we want. Lindstrom’s moving film, six years in the making, provides...

On September 17, 2006, James Chasse, a shy and gentle man with schizophrenia, was tackled by three police officers in front of dozens of eyewitnesses on a downtown street corner in Northwest Portland. He was not suspected of a crime, nor had he committed one, but nonetheless he suffered 17 broken ribs, a separated shoulder, a punctured lung, and numerous bruises and contusions—before dying. Chasse’s death and treatment shocked the city, asking profound questions about how we treat those with mental illness and what kind of a police force we want. Lindstrom’s moving film, six years in the making, provides both a detailed chronicle of Chasse’s tragic final hours and a deep look at the arc of his life from suburban childhood to trying to live as an independent adult with mental illness in a society ill-equipped to recognize his needs. (91 mins.)

ALOIS NEBEL

DIRECTOR: Tomáš Lunák - CZECH REPUBLIC

Based on the graphic novel trilogy by Jaroslav Rudiš and Jaromír Svejdík, this superbly atmospheric rotoscope animation employs noirish black-and-white images and an evocative soundtrack to portray the fractured psychology of a man and his country. In summer 1989, Alois Nebel works as a stationmaster in a small village in the Jeseník Mountains, close to the Polish border. Preferring old timetables to people, Nebel lives through his memories, haunted by the violent postwar expulsion of the Germans and getting lost in the mists of time. Encounters with a mysterious mute man and the kind Květa help him to connect the...

Based on the graphic novel trilogy by Jaroslav Rudiš and Jaromír Svejdík, this superbly atmospheric rotoscope animation employs noirish black-and-white images and an evocative soundtrack to portray the fractured psychology of a man and his country. In summer 1989, Alois Nebel works as a stationmaster in a small village in the Jeseník Mountains, close to the Polish border. Preferring old timetables to people, Nebel lives through his memories, haunted by the violent postwar expulsion of the Germans and getting lost in the mists of time. Encounters with a mysterious mute man and the kind Květa help him to connect the past with the present and to find middle-aged love. Winner of the European Film Award for Best Animated Film, Lunák’s auspicious debut is “destined to become a classic of the form.”—Piers Handling, Toronto International Film Festival (84 mins.)

AMERICAN WINTER

DIRECTOR: Joe Gantz, Harry Gantz - UNITED STATES

Five years into the worst economic crisis since the 1930s, American Winter presents a telling snapshot of the state of our society as it exists for millions of American families across the country. Shot over the course of the winter months of 2011–2012, the film follows eight Portland families—found through their calls to 211info, a referral service that steers thousands of families in crisis to available social services—as they were battling to keep their heads above water while facing overwhelming financial challenges and a shrinking social safety net. The devastating effects of the mortgage lending crisis, soaring unemployment, a broken...

Five years into the worst economic crisis since the 1930s, American Winter presents a telling snapshot of the state of our society as it exists for millions of American families across the country. Shot over the course of the winter months of 2011–2012, the film follows eight Portland families—found through their calls to 211info, a referral service that steers thousands of families in crisis to available social services—as they were battling to keep their heads above water while facing overwhelming financial challenges and a shrinking social safety net. The devastating effects of the mortgage lending crisis, soaring unemployment, a broken healthcare system, and the budget cuts to the social services are presented through the eyes of these families, all falling into poverty for the first time and struggling to keep their kids fed, clothed, and with a roof over their heads. (90 mins.)

THE ANGELS’ SHARE

DIRECTOR: Ken Loach - GREAT BRITAIN

In his bittersweet caper-comedy, which won the Jury Prize at Cannes, Loach turns his gaze on Robbie, a new father in trouble with the law. When he holds his newborn son for the first time, Robbie is determined that the boy will have a better life, one with opportunities. But Robbie must first sort out his life as a prison sentence looms. Given one more chance and sentenced to community service, he meets Rhino, Albert, and Mo, former criminals who also can’t find work. But, ironically, turning to drink changes their lives. Robbie, it turns out, has a rare gift—a...

In his bittersweet caper-comedy, which won the Jury Prize at Cannes, Loach turns his gaze on Robbie, a new father in trouble with the law. When he holds his newborn son for the first time, Robbie is determined that the boy will have a better life, one with opportunities. But Robbie must first sort out his life as a prison sentence looms. Given one more chance and sentenced to community service, he meets Rhino, Albert, and Mo, former criminals who also can’t find work. But, ironically, turning to drink changes their lives. Robbie, it turns out, has a rare gift—a great palate and a delicate nose for fine malt whisky. This newly discovered talent leads to an inspiration that might turn things around for him—but first, he faces a true test on a trip with the gang to the Scottish Highlands. (101 mins.)